An ode to the frenetic and the fantastic! Welcome to a place for the musings of a writer, traveler, foodie, crafter, party planner, and film fanatic. I always seem to have a million projects going on, but most recently I've been focused on a biggie: learning to be a mom.
I don't promise wisdom or wit, but enjoy sharing the things that I am passionate about with the world.

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Sunday, September 2, 2012

Depression Cookies Review

I don't normally blog on Sundays-- in fact, Sunday is the one day a week I typically set aside for staring at the television and drooling instead of even touching my computer. But, I've had a blog up my sleeve for a while, and this morning has been my first chance to write it!

Depression Cookies, a novel by Tia Silverthorne Bach and Angela Beach Silverthorne, is described as follows:

Depression
Cookies is a coming of age story woven around the heart
of family triumph. It is told from two distinct vantage points, middle-aged
mother, Abby, and her teenage daughter, Krista.
I've got to be honest- I read this book because I felt like a jerk for not. Tia Bach was one of the first people to review Max and Menna, and we corresponded a bit over email. She was wonderful and encouraging, and increasingly I would see the links to her book in her email signature and think "you're an a*s, you need to read her book."

But truth be told, I really didn't want to. Though its been two years since I lost my mother. I'm a wimp, but I avoid the word and was afraid of any sentimentality this book might offer, as I knew it would make me cry. Also, I have a multitude of regrets about the relationship I had with my mother when I was a teenager, and the idea of reading a book about them did not appeal to me. I I avoided this book because I anticipated a subtle dig at the trials and tribulations of raising teenagers that would spur my own guilt for having once been one.

What I got was anything but subtle digs against teens.

The book alternates between mother and daughter as narrator, and tells the story of a family that endures frequent moves to keep up with the pace of the patriarch's climb up the corporate ladder. Krista, a vivacious teen, shares the experiences from the perspective of someone who's life is frequently uprooted during one of the most difficult periods of growing up. Constantly moving is only one of the challenges facing Krista-- she also endures acne, jaw surgery, braces, and worst of all, other teenage girls.

On the flip side, Abby is a woman who struggles to hold together the pieces of a family seemingly under siege. Between moving, an unhappy teenager, another daughter showing signs of developing anorexia, a third daughter fighting epilepsy, and parents in declining health, her life gives the feeling of one trying to hold too many pieces of too many puzzles together.

The story centers around one particular move to North Carolina, and the two years that follow. The narrative is lyrical and beautiful. Each narrator offers a distinct and strong voice, and the two pieces blend to create a rich and inviting story.

While I read this out of guilt, within the first three chapters I found myself greedily sneaking time to read it. When I finished (and it is a long book), I kept reaching for my Kindle and then feeling suddenly sad when I realized that there was no more to read.

Depression Cookies is a book that I think any woman would enjoy, and should read. It provides a perspective on mothers and daughters that is unique, fresh, and at the same time comfortingly familiar. You can find it on Amazon here.

2 comments:

This sounds like a lovely read and one I'd really enjoy! The title really got my attention because I include a recipe for Aggression Cookies in my new book LOL. Now to go to Amazon and take a look! Thanks for the review, Shauna.

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About Me

Shauna Kelley is a maven of moonlighting, spending her time part-timing as a writer, teacher, baker, crocheter, gardener, and reader. Her favorite full-time gig is being mom to one amazing little boy.
She lives near Baltimore with her husband, kiddo, and extremely hyper dog.

Awards

ForeWord Reviews is pleased to announce the 2010 Book of the Year Awards list of finalists. Representing more than 350 publishers, the finalists were selected from 1400 entries in 56 categories. These books are examples of independent publishing at its finest. Lucky Press, LLC is an independent book publisher based in Athens, Ohio, and has three titles announced as finalists.

Max and Menna by Shauna Kelley (of Baltimore, Maryland) is a finalist in the Young Adult Fiction category. It is the story of three teenagers who survive poverty and prejudice in the South in the 1980s.